Who makes the best fishing tackle?

[Stuart]

Pinhead,

Dont worry mate, yours will be done very soon. I have to much invested to just drop the ball and go home, although I would like to. If I could sell the whole lot I would.

[culbara]

Well fo rme it would have to be loomis in fishing rods as i have 9 of the buggers including fly rods and as far as a spin reel i like the shimano twin power

[devocean]

Shimano for reels custom for rods all the way. Refuse to buy dawai they rip us off in oz and refuse to discount any of there good gear

[davo]

I have a lot of Daiwa stuff but hate their baitcasters has I don't like the drags. I own all Shimano baitcasters but it will be interesting with the lastest models being built cheaper.

[MEG-A-BITE]

Shimano for me cant beat, the stella and Tiagra range.

[NAGG]

Shimano for me cant beat, the stella and Tiagra range.

They would just about be the only Shimano reels that are worth buying (IMO) -

Chris

[Jason Killen]

I have both Daiwa and Shimano reels and my Daiwa reels have had the same problem. Daiwa sol and certate both had these problems in that the bail arm will stop clicking over and the ball bearings in the line roller stop working. Don't get me wrong they are great reels but these simple problems are a pain and take forever to get the parts to fix. My shimano reels (Rarenium ci4 4000 and twin power 4000) haven't put a foot wrong even though they are cheaper reels. I like Daiwa but these problems have led me to go with Shimano. If Daiwa fixed these problems then we would probably see a more even contest because I have heard that many other people have had these same problems and are moving away from Daiwa.
Cheers
Jase

[NAGG]

I have both Daiwa and Shimano reels and my Daiwa reels have had the same problem. Daiwa sol and certate both had these problems in that the bail arm will stop clicking over and the ball bearings in the line roller stop working. Don't get me wrong they are great reels but these simple problems are a pain and take forever to get the parts to fix. My shimano reels (Rarenium ci4 4000 and twin power 4000) haven't put a foot wrong even though they are cheaper reels. I like Daiwa but these problems have led me to go with Shimano. If Daiwa fixed these problems then we would probably see a more even contest because I have heard that many other people have had these same problems and are moving away from Daiwa.
Cheers
Jase

The only dramas I've had with Daiwa spin reels are noisy bail rollers ( common problem in the Certates) . daiwa baitcasters often suffer from stuttery drags - between these two issues & a $20ish fix ( quality line roller bearing or Erskine drag washers) you end up with very good reels ............ though you shouldn't need to do this when buying a quality reel . Regardless the daiwa reels are much better built & maintain their tolerances for much longer ( particuilarly when fished hard) - Over the years I've retired several Shimano baitcasters that ended up feeling sloppy .... . then switched to Daiwas ( Zillions , Steez & Alphas )

[2manylures]

They would just about be the only Shimano reels that are worth buying (IMO) -

Chris

I don't believe that for a minute Chris

[NAGG]

I don't believe that for a minute Chris

You are right ...... there would be a couple of others in the light game genre .

chris

[2manylures]

You are right ...... there would be a couple of others in the light game genre .

chris

YEH, see where you're coming from Chris, Charter Specials and TLD's have been around for a couple of years.

I'm surprised none of the little tackers take your fancy

[NAGG]

YEH, see where you're coming from Chris, Charter Specials and TLD's have been around for a couple of years.

I'm surprised none of the little tackers take your fancy

Hi Dave

When it came to overheads I was Shimano through & through - my game / offshore stuff & baitcasters ......... but when I got away from the big gear & started into the lure casting ..... particularly barra I started to look for robust & smaller reels (low profile) ..... I had a Chronarch SF & Calcutta 200 that failed - & this is where I was introduced to the Daiwa Zillion & I was impressed at the build / design - Now I started to take more interest in Daiwa gear (JDM & Local) ...... & while Daiwa were introducing little gems , Shimano were falling off the pace ....... & continue to do so .
When it came to spin reels - when Daiwa introduced their tournament range in the 1990's it was game over (quality small reels)- then came the Saltiga & Certates during the earlyish 2000s ..... outstanding & powerful reels that were only matched with the introduction of the Stellas . ( Real Four customisation Today Daiwa cover the spin range so much better than Shimano - A lot of the technology used in the more expensive Daiwas have filtered through to the cheaper reels. Compare a $200 Daiwa / Shimano spin reel and you will see what I mean.
I dont have blinkers on though & will always check out what other manufactures incl Shimano are putting out - I bought a 2000 Stella a few years back & it turned out to be a wind knot generator & now has corrosion in the spool ....... & this was Shimanos best offering .
Today if I'm buying a reel - I still look at what Shimano have in their range at the same price point & with the exception of the Curado - & the high end Stella Daiwa cover the bases with a better offering particularly mid to high end .
Personally I feel that Shimano have gone down the path of building reels for a price point rather than developing better performing reels & that is where my bias originates from. I'm not interested in the cheapest reels , I'm after quality ones that fit my needs........ & maybe a bit of WOW factor

Anyhow that's where I'm coming from -

Chris

[PinHead]

shimano grea all the way..and to find the fish definitelt need a humminbird sounder..and if you are pushed along by a ETEC, what more could you ask for?

[NAGG]

shimano grea all the way..and to find the fish definitelt need a humminbird sounder..and if you are pushed along by a ETEC, what more could you ask for?

something better

[.:::stotty:::.]

They would just about be the only Shimano reels that are worth buying (IMO) -

Chris

This is also what I thought at one point Chris.

I used to own all daiwa products, zillions, alphas r's, blacksheeps ect. But they are all great reels until you fish an entire season with one, I have broken 3 zillions now and 2 alphas's. 2 zillions the main gear started stripping itself or something like that I was explained and it had so much backplay. The alphas r's where just terrible after a while.

Now I own a 200calcutta dc, core 100mg, core 50mg, stella 3000 and soon a 5000stella. The core's are amazing, they are light, they would be the best casting reel I have ever used, out performs the DC anyday. They are great to use all day.

The calcutta 200dc is a big reel, but it so powerful and solid I dont mind pushing it or throwing it around on the boat or on landbased sessions, matched up with a megabass destroyer broom stick of a rod it is now my favorite jack combo.

Everyone should feel and consider a Shimano core before looking into something else, I would buy a 3rd one if I ever need another bc.